The largest statue of the world ‘the Statue of Unity’ is now ready and will be inaugurated by our Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Kevadia in Narmada district of Gujarat tomorrow. Built as a memorial to the ‘Iron Man of India’ Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the statue stands at 182 metres, which is far more than the Statue of Liberty in New York City and the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro.
5 Unknown Facts About The Largest Statue
1. The Statue of Unity is the largest statue in the world with a height of 182 metres standing tall above the Narmada river. The statue is located on a river island called ‘Sadhu Bet’ and is about 3.5 km away from the Narmada dam.
2. Built at a cost of over Rs 2,300 crore (Rs 23.89 billion), the statue has been constructed with 25,000 tonnes of iron and 90,000 tonnes of cement. The core of the statue is made up of reinforced concrete and the surface of the staue has been created using 553 bronze panels.
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3. Nearly 3,400 labourers and 250 engineers have worked in this project. The statue has been shaped by a 93-year-old renowned sculptor, Ram Vanji Sutar. He has given India over 8,000 sculptures and has been honoured with the Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri.
4. Spread across 19,000 square metres area, the largest statue will be surrounded by a valley of flowers.
5. To facilitate tourists, the government will also construct a 52-room 3-star hotel and 2 tent cities with almost 250 tents.
Those who are unaware, India’s first Home Minister, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was instrumental in ensuring the merger of 585 princely states and kingdoms across India after Independence.